Canada's Scotiabank has signed a pact with HDFC Bank to reach out to customers in India. The deal was launched at the bank's multicultural banking department. According to Sabi Marwah, Executive Vice-President and Chief Administrative Officer of Scotiabank, the pact would enable the bank to reach out to Indians relocating to Canada while at the same time providing its Canadian customers with a referral to one of India's leading financial institutions. Such a pact would not just address the issue of Indians relocating to Canada, but could address their problems in India itself. Besides, they could open their Canadian accounts even before arriving to Canada.

Marwah hoped to open up more branches of the bank if and when the Reserve Bank of India eased the regulatory hurdles.

Prithipal Singh, chief representative of HDFC Bank in Canada, said his bank was proud to have a tie-up with Canada's second largest and international bank. He too agreed that this was a major step for both banks to solve banking problems of immigrants from India.

Canada-India Business Council president Kam Rathee welcomed the deal, saying it was a "very strategic move'' by Scotiabank for future entry into India.

He went onto say that Bank of Punjab had missed out on such an offer and was later acquired by the Centurion Bank (which later was acquired by HDFC Bank), and so Scotiabank had struck the next best deal in India by tying up with HDFC Bank. He was hopeful of an HDFC-Scotiabank in India in the future.

It should be noted that the two banks had signed a memorandum of understanding in November 2007, and a formal agreement to cement their relationship was to be signed soon.

Scotiabank operates in more than 50 countries and serves more than 12 million customers, with over $450 billion in assets and 65,000 employees.

Additionally, the bank started its operations in India in 1984 and currently has five branches - Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Coimbatore.